About Meditation

A knowledge of the roots
Sahaja Yoga is a method of meditation which brings a breakthrough in the evolution of human awareness. It was created by Shri Mataji Nirmala Devi in 1970 and has since spread all around the world.

In Shri Mataji’s own words: “Global unity of mankind can be achieved through this awakening that can occur within each human being, so that transformation takes place within us. By this process a person becomes moral, united, integrated and balanced. One actually gets the experience of the feeling of the all-pervading divine power as cool breeze. “Know thyself” is the main theme of all the scriptures – it becomes evident and one reaches the absolute understanding of oneself.

Thus one becomes peaceful and joyous in life. One becomes collective as a drop falling into the ocean of compassion. This method works for the multitudes and not individually. Of course one cannot pay for the experience of Divine Love. Moreover, it is the last breakthrough of our evolution. This is the actualization of such transformation, which is taking place now, worldwide, and has been proved and experienced by hundreds of thousands in over 85 countries.”

The next step in our collective evolution
This inner awakening is called by many names: Self Realization, Second Birth, Enlightenment, Liberation, Moksha, Satori and it is the goal of all religions and spiritual traditions of the world. This knowledge is ancient, but for a long time it was available only to a few souls, being kept secret and transmitted from guru to disciple, since Self Realization was extremely difficult to achieve. In these modern times, through Sahaja (“spontaneous”) Yoga (“union with one’s Self”), this experience has become effortless and available to everyone, for the first time in the history of human spirituality.

The advent of Sahaja Yoga was prophesized a long time ago in many of the world’s spiritual traditions and religions (see the section on Prophecies and Fulfillments). At the same time, in these modern times many seekers of Truth have been deluded into following various false, self-proclaimed “gurus” who are either money or power oriented, but not Spirit oriented (here is a guide on how to recognize them).

Through the practice of Sahaja Yoga, our awareness gains a new dimension where absolute truth can be felt tangibly – on our central nervous system. As a result of this happening, our spiritual ascent takes place effortlessly and physical, mental and emotional balance are achieved as a byproduct of this growth of our awareness.

We then realize that we are not this body, mind, ego, conditionings, emotions or intellect, but something of an eternal nature which is always residing in our heart in a pure, undisturbed state – the Self or Spirit. The Spirit is the source of true knowledge, peace and joy. Self Realization is the actualization of this connection with our Spirit, which as Shri Mataji advocates, is the birthright of every human being.

Kundalini energy

Shri Mataji Nirmala Devi describes the Kundalini energy as the reflection of the Adi Shakti (Hindu) or God Almighty (Christian) within ourselves. Hence we have many references from the various scriptures as to awakening the power within. When the Kundalini is awakened, the qualities of the chakras start to manifest spontaneously and express themselves in our life. Thus, through regular meditation, we become automatically very dynamic, creative, confident and at the same time very humble, loving and compassionate. It is a process which starts to develop by itself when the Kundalini rises and starts to nourish our chakras.~}Each of the seven chakras has several spiritual qualities. These qualities are intact within us, and even though they might not always be manifest, they can never be destroyed.

Inside every human being there is a network of nerves and sensory organs that interprets the outside physical world. At the same time, within us resides a subtle system of channels (nadis) and centers of energy (chakras) which look after our physical, intellectual, emotional and spiritual being.

“It is important for everyone to have that knowledge of the roots within ourselves. Sahaja Yoga allows the individual to become his own Spiritual Guide.”
— Shri Mataji Nirmala Devi

When the kundalini crosses the Agnya chakra a state of thoughtless awareness results. This is a state in which the practitioner achieves ‘Nirvichar Samadhi’ that is thoughtless awareness and does not have to think. It is a blissful state in which one is poised in the present, neither concerned with the past or with the future. One remains fully alert and aware of oneself and one’s surroundings but watching without reaction.

In this state one is able to absorb the beauty of one’s surroundings, of beautiful scenery or paintings without intereference by the mind. The mind tries to react to things with either the ego or the superego, but when this reaction stops one can truly appreciate.

Sahaja Yoga meetings give you the opportunity to purify the Agnya chakra and to establish deeper meditations.

It is possible to become your own master through Sahaja Yoga meditation.What does it mean to be your own master? It means that you are free, not bound by the chains of desires, materialism, hatred, attachments, anger, greed, fear and jealousy. You are able to overcome these negative energies and allow the eternal qualities within you to shine.How, then, is it possible to become your own master? The first requirement is that you are truly aware of your condition, not through the mind, which is given to rationalisation, but in some other more objective way. This is exactly what happens when you get what is aptly called Self-realisation. You actually start to feel sensations on your fingertips that correspond to your energy centres, and you can also feel the energy centres of those around you, and also whether a place or a thing has a positive energy or not. This is not as strange as it may seem, just re-call your Shakespeare, “By the pricking of my thumbs, something wicked this way comes,” and in the Koran “But their hands will speak to us and their feet bear witness to all that they did.”So, once you are able to feel the vibrations of the energy centres, what do you do with that knowledge? By attending a free Sahaja Yoga meditation centre near you, you will be shown a number of techniques that will enable you to bring yourself into balance and also to cleanse individual energy centres.As a result, it is truly possible to become ones own master.

Sahaja Yoga meditation makes it possible for you to experience Thoughtless Awareness , a state in which there are no thoughts. This is only possible when the kundalini has been awakened and it has opened the Agnya chakra, located in the center of the brain.

At first this experience may only last a few seconds, but with time, this period of thoughtless awareness can be lengthened.

Studies have shown that there is a correlation between the amount of times that people experience Thoughtless Awareness with their health and well being.

By attending a Sahaja Yoga centre (there is no cost) you can be shown how to establish Thoughtless Awareness and to deepen the experience. To find a local centre near you go to Sahaja Yoga near you

Sahaja Yoga does improve your health and there is a lot of research to back this assertion up.

An example of this is Asthma research. The Natural Therapies unit at the Royal Hospital for Women in Sydney demonstrated a significant improvement in asthma for patients who were practising Sahaja Yoga meditation when compared against a control group who were not. A double blind, randomised control trial methodology was followed. Results were measured in three ways: through a profile of mood states, a combined asthma score (diary based) and by checking patients to see how responsive their airways were to metacholine.

It was concluded that the Sahaja Yoga meditation group showed a significant reduction in their reaction to asthma inducing substances as compared with the control group, which demonstrated that the severity of their asthma had been reduced through Sahaja Yoga.

Within every human being is a dormant energy waiting to be awakened. This energy is called the kundalini. Once this energy has been awakened it rises through a number of energy centres, pierces the fontanelle bone (the soft area on a baby’s head) and manifests as a cool breeze on top of the head, which can be percieved by placing the hand above the head. This awakening of the kundalini is known as Self-realisation.

When the kundalini crosses these energy centres it awakens them and the qualities of these centres start manifesting within the individual. Another very important state occurs, and this is called thoughtless awareness in Sahaja Yoga meditation; a state of Thoughtless Awareness in which we become tuned into the silence of the cosmos. It is not to be confused with a trance state as we remain absolutely alert and aware of everything around us. In this state we truly are in the present: after all if you are thinking then your thoughts are either of the past or of the future; it is not possible to capture the present in your thoughts. It is a state in which we feel truly peaceful, blissful and joyful.

By attending a Sahaja Yoga centre near you, you can experience your Self-realisation. Established Sahaja Yogis will help you to balance your energy centres and and to establish your Self-realisation. Sahaja Yoga meditation classes are always free.